We are less than a month away from this year’s Chicago Seminars, the oldest and largest gathering of points and miles aficionados. Joe and Mike talk about the event and give a preview of lectures both Joe and I will be giving. There is also a survey Also discussed are strategies to prepare for a potential Alaska and Hawaiian airlines merger now tha…

Meetups are one of our favorite aspects of this hobby which allow us to interact in person with those who share our same passion/obsession. Angie and Mike are fresh off the latest Award Travel 101 meetup in Seattle where they interreacted with almost 50 other members of the community. They detail the experiences of the weekend and reiterate the ben…

As part of our "Meet The Mods" series Mike talks with April about her background, travel style and of course love of Hyatt. They also discuss the nuances of being native New Yorkers where it's seemingly required to vacation in Florida nearly every year. Further discussion ensues about important credos such as " book early, book often" and "the phon…

If you have been around this space for awhile you'll inevitably run into issues dealing with "muggles" or those unwise in the magical arts of award travel. Angie and Mike talk about the type of muggles we meet and how to best converse with them without sounding like a crazy person. Links to topics discussed Under the Canvas Joins World of Hyatt (Co…

This week Mike talks with Joe who has just logged his latest entry in his "Summer of Travel" logbook by traveling Japan Air Lines Business Class JFK to Toyko, intra-Asia flights to Korea and back. Then the culmination of Etihad business and first class from Tokyo to Abu Dhabi back to JFK. Hyatt and FHR stays throughout. Links to Topics Discussed: S…

Angie talks with new moderator and Ohio native Cameron about his background, travel style and favorite trips. He details his passion for travel for both himself and to show his family the world and how points and miles made it all possible. Links to topics discussed: Temporarily can not can book AF/KLM through Virgin (until August) New Amex Centuri…

In this week's episode Mike and Angie discuss some of the recent hotel card offers then get into the main feature of handling major changes in their life such as a new house and a new job and how it affects their award travel strategy. Links to Topics Discussed in This Week's Episode: Chase Ink Preferred 120k Offer IHG Premier Card 5 Free Night Awa…

It's now July, and we're more than half-way through 2024. In this episode, we're reviewing what we've done through the year to this point, along with some of the trips and places we've been able to book thanks to Award Travel! Post of the week From this long-time community member, Joe. Have you heard of this guy? Do you take time to recharge with y…

Award Travel 101 moderator, digital nomad and foodie Anthony Cave talks with Mike about his background, what got him into award travel and how he found living a nomadic life was more cost effective and fulfilling. Later on Mike and Anthony discuss their love of airport lounges, their most/least favorites and the best ways to access them. Links to n…

In this episode, Angie and Joe cover news of the week along with mistakes we’ve made or we’ve seen friends and family make. Links to Topics Discussed LifeMiles showing $1,000+ fees on awards (even in economy) Virgin Atlantic is having a 40% off award sale! No notice devaluation of Choice hotels Aeroplan has (again) paused points expiration Where to…

Mike and Joe discuss new airport lounges, Hilton and Hyatt independent hotel affiliations, tipping culture and the broader featured topic of how travel teaches us new things about every place we visit. The Award Travel 101 Podcast is brought to you in part by Thrifty Traveler Premium. Get Thrifty Traveler Premium deal/award alerts sent straight to …

This week Angie talks with newest Award Travel 101 moderator Randy Clinton. Randy talks about his background, what got him started in travel rewards and loyalty programs. Randy talks about some of the aspirational products he has flown and how he booked them. He also shares some of his tips for one of his favorite ways to travel, cruises and how to…

Joe is off cruising the Mediterranean so Mike and Angie are on this week. We talk about some news such as AA rolling back their unpopular changes to how loyalty points would be earned. Finally we ponder quirks in the award travel world that makes us grumpy from restrictive bank rules to the CPP Police. Links to topics discussed: Targeted World of H…

Joe talks with Gunnar Olson of Thrifty Traveler on how award travel has helped enrich his travels with his Player 2), and they've created fond memories flying some incredible products, by way of his work at Thrifty Traveler. Joe and Gunnar also discuss how the past 6 months have probably been more brutal than what we’ve seen in any other past perio…

This week Joe and Angie discuss lots of news such as the rebranded Citi Strata Premier, Virgin Red Cruise deal, some SLH properties rejoining World of Hyatt via Mr & Mrs Smith and more. Then then as the summer of travel heats up they discuss the their tips for getting ready for a trip. Something hopefully everyone we be doing soon and often this su…

The 14th annual Chicago Seminars has a long and storied history. In Episode 64: The Most Powerful Tool in Award Travel, we had two of the event's organizers sharing the announcement of this year's event changes. In this episode, Angie is joined by two more of this year's organizers, Chris Moss and Marty Paz who share more details on the variety of …

Award Travel 101 Community members probably know which cards to start with - Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Sapphire Reserve, Ultimate Rewards' earning Ink (Preferred, Unlimited, Cash) cards, Amex Gold and Platinum (consumer and business) cards. But what happens when you can't get new cards? Many of us have been in that boat where we can’t open …

We just returned from our meetup in San Antonio for Fiesta. There were over 150 Award Travel 101 and members from the Award Travel 201 communities in attendance. We had a great group of speakers who shared their stories and tips: Justin Vacula (Hurdy Gurdy Travel Podcast) blew everybody’s minds with creative ways to hit minimum spend and earn statu…

We came across an interesting diagram ranking the top 20 hotel programs throughout the world. Do you know which is largest? (Hint: it's not US-based) Some are less familiar, so we ranked the six we most frequently discuss in the Award Travel 101 Facebook community: #2 Wyndham - 9,280 properties #3 Marriott- 8,484 properties #6 Choice - 7,500 proper…

How does one weed out the noise to find what's most useful for your Award Travel strategies? In-person events will provide opportunities for attendees to speak with and listen to experts in the field which help fine-tune their strategies. We encourage you to attend, engage, explore, learn, and ask questions. Chicago Seminars organizers Jackie and J…

Thanks to a recommendation from a member, we decided to review when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em. Is there long-term value? Are the benefits enough to offset the annual fee? If not, is there a retention offer? If no offer, is there a path to product change to preserve the credit line to help with utilization ratio If there's no path to product …

One Quarter into 2024 Joe and Angie discuss their trips and progress towards their point and status goals. Well since we know Angie is a status slacker at least Joe talked about his progress there. Links to Topics Discussed 8 New Airlines Just Joined PreCheck. Here’s A List of All 99 TSA PreCheck Participating Airlines— Iberia is the biggie here Ch…

Mike and Joe discuss their trips to Australia. Mike was there for 8 days in a long anticipated trip to celebrate his 40th birthday while Joe jaunted down for 52 hours. Both flew United and American business class products on their longest routes discuss the pros and cons of each. Their respective stays at the Hyatt Regency, Park Hyatt and Four Seas…

In this episode, Joe interviews a long-time friend, who was hesitant to open up credit cards for fear of ruining his credit and overspending. Tune-in to hear how he overcame that fear and is now booking his first international business class flights! These aren't the typical domestic carriers a newer Award Traveler might book either (American, Delt…

Finding award space could be difficult and often a frustrating exercise. Joe and Angie outline the steps and give tips on how to improve your results. Flexibility in types of points available, dates of travel, and airline routings. Start your search with your preferred airline, then expand your search out to partner airlines, and compare points nee…

One of the keys in this hobby is maximizing the return on your spend. Joe and Angie talk about the ways to never earn only one point per dollar again. They discuss the idea of building a portfolio/family of cards that return more value. Some good references. Travel Gas Grocery Dining Office Supply & Communications Streaming Everywhere Our friends a…

In this episode's highlight feature, "Let’s Get Crafty," we explore various strategies to maximize credit card rewards tailored to different situations. Whether you have a "Player Two" or are flying solo, Angie and Joe guide you through evaluating upcoming trips and selecting the best cards in 4 scenarios: Scenario 1: Two player mode, both people c…

John Ryan is very young and active in the Award Travel 101/201 community and writes for Bougie Miles. He talks with Joe about how his passion for travel began at a very young age. As primarily an economy flyer he discusses the different ways to approach budget travel. Contact info for John: john.ryan@fora.travel @vegasteenager on X Where to Find Us…

Joe and Angie talk about the value of transferable over fixed points and how to best leverage them for maximum value utilizing the strength of transfer partners. Links to topics Discussed Air France–KLM Flying Blue Award Sweet Spots Amex Adds ‘Family’ Restrictions to the American Express® Green Card Book Now: Turkish Airlines to Devalue Miles & Smi…

Many of us in this hobby involve our significant others in our award travel strategy, thereby activating "two player mode" which often allows us to double our earnings. However having a Player 2 does also come with it's own costs and frustrations. We have to make sure that P2 uses the correct cards (labels help) but also travel with them (costing m…

This week Joe interviews Award Travel 101 community member Allison Tackette who joins us to share tips she's learned over 10 years in the space. Allison is a former teacher who wanted to get out and see the world, but her time off in the summer often resulted in finding peak season pricing. Travel CAN be expensive if you're always paying cash, but …

Having a solid credit history is a paramount goal in the Award Travel hobby. Angie and Joe talk about strategies for building healthy credit and finding better offers. Guide to Building Healthy Credit Credit Card Strategy Application Rules of 4 Major Issuers Links to topics discussed United Offers (Outrageous) Premier Elite Status Buy-Up Offers New…

Joe is joined by the most frequent guest of the podcast, Toni Perkins-Southam. Many of you may remember Toni as the longest-running Award Travel 101 moderator and community admin. Toni spent almost five years in the community (two years as a community manager) before taking a position with Forbes Advisor. Toni shares how she got her start writing w…

Joe and Angie recap their prior year card openings and point earning. Highlight feature: 2023 Trip Recaps Angie: 12 new cards SUB = 1.4M points Referrals = 390K Points used = 1.2M (double prior year) Joe: 14 new cards SUB = 1.5M points + HH FNA Referrals = 500K Spend = 100K Shopping portals = 100K Tip of the week It's a new year, with new credits. …

It's a new year and Joe and Angie talk about their resolutions for 2024, including: Angie Update and use all/more features of AwardWallet Clean up Google Photos Clean up multiple email accounts Create a spreadsheet of all my cards Explore casino matching for free cruises Joe Citi/Barclays AA companion certs - never use (4) UA Club passes - making s…

Ryan Smith, editor for AwardWallet has accomplished a feat that few achieve. He has visited all 197 recognized countries. Ryan first talks talks his background, introduction to travel rewards and loyalty programs and travel style. He also delves into highlights of his globetrotting journey and how he was able to land some deals to travel for as eco…

Angie, Allison, and Joe jump on this week to share the 100K Member Celebration Winner, their newest cards, trip updates, and to bring you an Airing of (2023) Grievances! Festivus was created as an alternative to the pressures and commercialism of the Christmas holiday season. The sitcom Seinfeld put their own spin on it, including the airing of the…

Allison and Jackie take over the podcast to discuss the news and to share more about their recent trip to Rio de Janeiro to see Taylor Swift in concert. They had a fantastic stay at the Hilton Copacabana and despite issues caused by excessive heat which caused one concert to be cancelled they were still able to make friendship bracelets, watch Tayl…

Angie and Joe talk about their trip highlights from 2023. Angie's big trips were an African safari to a girls trip to Bali & Singapore. Meanwhile Joe went on an epic first class trip to Europe with his dad as well as several family trips. Links to News Discussed World of Hyatt Updates Guest of Honor Perk 37 different promos Alaska purchases Hawaiia…

Feel like you are learning a new language? We often get folks saying “please spell out these acronyms” but when it’s the same word over and over again, you need shorthand. Some examples include 5/24, CSR, SUB, and P2. Links to News Discussed Southwest bookable through Chase travel portal Lifelock at 95% Rakuten Black Friday Huge Qatar award dump Co…

Justin fell into travel rewards programs accidentally as he was working his way through various casino programs. Listen as he and Joe discuss some of the dead deals of the past to learn more about what you can look for in the future. If you want to hear Part One of this discussion, where Justin interviews Joe, check out the Hurdy Gurdy Podcast. In …

Angie's back to catch up on all of the news and to discuss how we can better manage all of our award programs. Namely a Free AwardWallet subscription. You can also get AwardWallet Plus for more enhanced and time saving features. The Award Travel 101 group also celebrates the milestone of reaching 100K members! Links to News Discussed New United Car…

Award Travel 101 Podcast partner and founder of Thrifty Traveler Premium, Jared Kamrowski, joins Joe to discuss how Award Travel fundamentally changed his life and experiences. Starting as a broke college student, Jared became a road warrior who learned techniques to improve his travel experiences for less. He and his wife wanted to travel more in …

Joe and Mike talk this week about their recent trips plus aspirational flights they have taken or wish to take in the near future including: Alaska Pancake Run CLE-PIT-SEA-CLE. In Jan 2024 (Editors note: sadly this flight was cancelled due to the Boeing 737-9 door plug fiasco. Upper deck of 747. Lufthansa & BA Aspirational Longest- Singapore JFK-SI…

Angie and Joe both met for the first time as Joe was traveling to Angie's hometown, so they both love meetups. This week, Angie went to Chicago Seminars, Joe went out west for Zorkfest. Links to Topics Discussed Delta Elite status changes MGM Marriott updates Transfer Bonuses Flying Blue & Lifemiles How I Traveled (with my son) Using Awards & $54 H…

Angie and Allison talk about how she is going on a girls trip to Bali and paying less than $1500 per person compared to $12,000 if they paid cash. Flights on Qatar (QR) for 100k, Singapore (SQ) for 112.5k and Etihad (EK) for 87.5k. Full trip report posted in the Award Travel 101 Community w/hotel and airline reviews Links to other topics discussed …

Angie's back, and she and Joe jump on the podcast to discuss the state of Amex, their newest bonuses, trip updates, and under appreciated award currencies. Are all points equal? Should a member get a 140K IHG offer or take less from the 75K United Business or even less from the 60K Citi Premier? There are things for which you should have a basic un…

Award Travel mod Sophie and Joe discuss news, their newest cards, trip updates, and how Sophie has transitioned into the travel business. Meet Sophie Keller Background - 1st card- Chase Sapphire Preferred/United Explorer Highlights - Hyatt Zilara Cap Cana right after it opened last year, Park Hyatt New York and Flagship First before award price hik…

Angie and Joe are off traveling this week, so Mike takes over the podcast with community member Erin Kilpatrick to discuss her “mid-life renaissance” this year which would not have been possible without award travel. Listen to her journey through Ecuador (Galapagos), Uruguay, England/Wales, Norway, Denmark, Faroe Islands and Sweden along with futur…

What happens when you're too loyal to a program - are they loyal back? Angie and Joe discuss developments this week, bonuses they've earned, and prepping for travel. Links to topics discussed Point.me “Quicklook” Hyatt Elite status shortcut Hyatt Bonus Journeys Buy Frontier Elite 20k status Venture X Business Miles Bonus Capital One changes how to …